


Skipping Out

by penpea



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M, School Festivals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-10
Updated: 2014-08-10
Packaged: 2018-02-12 15:44:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2115603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/penpea/pseuds/penpea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Hinata was late for practice.</i>
</p><p>In which Hinata's busy preparing for the school's cultural festival and Kageyama thinks he misses practicing with him (when in fact he just misses the boy and ends up realizing things that should have been obvious ages ago)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Skipping Out

Hinata was late for practice.

Kageyama had walked into the gym, sure that Hinata would come dashing behind him soon enough and they'd race to be the first one inside but it was nothing like that.

He walked in -the first person to make it to the court- and sat down on the wooden floor, waiting for the others to show up for practice.

Suga and Daichi showed up a few minutes after him, talking amiably about things that didn't concern him and things that went over his head- studies basically.

Everyone else came a while later but not Hinata. Kageyama wondered distantly if the boy was sick but he was sure that wasn't the case since he'd seen a head of orange hair during lunch break. Not that he'd been looking specifically for him as he’d made his way towards the vending machine.

They had to practice without him in the end, and Kageyama’s frown was deeper than it normally was by the end of it. No one seemed to be worried about the boy being missing and that's what finally prompted him to ask Suga- albeit a little hesitantly- about Hinata's whereabouts.

"Oh, he's helping out with the cultural festival preparations," Suga explained with a short laugh, "He said he didn't want to but his classmates forced him into it because he always runs away without doing anything."

Kageyama shook his head and left the gym, thanking Suga for the information. He should have known Hinata would leave the preparations until the last minute instead of helping out the others when he could have.

He supposed that was just the way he was, careless and taking things as they came, not thinking about what would come in the future. Kageyama didn't really mind but he would have been lying if he said he hadn't found their practice sessions a little boring without him.

\---

He didn't come the next day either and Kageyama was only able to see him for five minutes when the boy came running into the gym, apologizing for not being able to train again since he was so caught up in the work.

Daichi excused him easily but Kageyama had half a mind to smack him on the back of the head for skipping again. Their quick still needed work and if they didn't practice every day how were they going to make it perfect?

With a sidelong glance, he watched the boy leave the hall, and he almost ran up to him to tell him he'd better show up tomorrow but he stayed where he was, feeling a little dumb for getting mad about being ignored so thoroughly.

His serves were spot on as usual but something felt off and he couldn't quite place what it was. Suga noticed too and gave him a comforting smile from where he was standing near the benches, mopping the floor after practice.

He could practically hear Tsukishima’s condescending laughter a mile away and he wondered if he really looked that miserable.

It was entirrely that dumbass's fault.

\---

Kageyama didn’t have time to think about him the next day because his own class had, for some unknown reason, decided to put him in the haunted house display to play the part of Sadako. He wasn't sure how he was the only one eligible for that role since there were tons of scary girls in the class but he didn't bother protesting much when they told him he'd be perfect for the part. He felt like he was needed and although he glowered about it in front of them, he felt just a little pleased with himself for being the only one who could be Sadako.

He couldn’t go to practice that day since they still had to do make up tests on him and the girls had a fun time trying to make Kageyama look as scary as he possibly could. It was a little embarrassing to be wearing a long haired wig and his face flushed despite the white paint on his face. He hoped no one from the team would see him like this, dressed up like a hollow cheeked, dead eyed woman from a horror movie.

Of course, knowing Kageyama’s bad luck, the one person he'd been hoping to avoid decided to show up in his class completely unannounced, asking for masking tape to hang the posters with.

When Kageyama heard his voice, light and cheerful, his heartbeat picked up as if he'd just scored a particularly good serve, and he had just one whole second to ponder upon the strangeness of the feeling in his chest feeling when the boy screamed, high pitched and annoying before breaking into a string of laughter that made both Kageyama’s face flush and his frown deepen. The girls inched away from him slowly as he got up and folded his arms across his chest, staring down Hinata who was still laughing as he clutched his stomach.

"Oi dumbass, what's so funny?" he asked, despite being perfectly aware of the reason.

Hinata took a moment to calm his breath before snickering again and pointing to his face, "You look like a woman Kageyama! And a hideous one too!"

Kageyama had the dignity to look offended, "It's Sadako." he said.

Hinata nodded and moved forward to take a lock of hair from the wig he was still wearing. Kageyama wanted to clamp a hand on the boy's head but he couldn't move. Instead, he looked at the boy and realized that it had been so long since he'd actually _talked_ to him and, somehow, that fact seemed to wash his anger away.

He could almost ignore the way his classmates were staring at the two of them.

Hinata looked at the hair he was holding and grinned, "Quality stuff. It almost looks real."

Kageyama hmphed and looked away, feeling stupidly pleased at the thought, "Shut up, dumbass. Everyone's staring."

"Who's the dumbass huh?" Hinata said, shaking his hands around animatedly, "I'm not the one wearing a wig."

Kageyama coughed and gestured towards the class, unable to meet Hinata’s eyes. "Does anyone have masking tape? This idiot needs it."

Hinata protested before nodding quickly and taking the tape from one of the girls watching him with an amused expression. "Thanks!" he said and ran off, waving bye to Kageyama who shook his head and took off the wig, feeling like an absolute idiot.

"Um...are you good friends with him?" a girl asked him and offered him a cotton swab to clean his face with. He took it and shrugged.

"I guess." he said automatically, only thinking about it after he'd said it.

Would they be considered friends if they trained together every day? He’d never really thought about it but it had been a really long time since he'd first met the boy, and they hadn't exactly _gotten along_ back then. He'd really, _really_ found him annoying but somewhere along the way, he realized, those feelings had changed into something resembling respect for the boy- seeing him try so hard and learn so fast during their practice sessions was something that he liked. Maybe it was also the fact that he was the team's most formidable decoy and that made him more useful than he would have liked to admit.

But was that really all? He thought it was normal to see him every day but not seeing him made him feel hollow and bored and he was sure that had nothing to do with the training sessions or the way he always asked him to serve him more and more balls until he got it just right.

Hinata’s smiling face came to mind and he thought of the way his laugh lit up the gym when they would train- he really was like the sun in that aspect.

"Kageyama-kun?" the girl spoke up again and he snapped his head in her direction, "You dropped the cotton...is everything alright?"

He slowly looked down at the white piece of cotton on the floor and shook his head. No, _nothing_ was alright.

He was in love with his dumbass teammate and he hadn't even realized it until now.

\---

The next day he couldn't stop looking at him and his eyes wandered over to his direction every time he got distracted. His painful realization had come with the sudden urge to meet him but with only a day left for the festival, Kageyama couldn't find much of an excuse to see him at all.

He hung around the cafeteria, feeling the stares of the others as he stood next to a pillar overlooking the sales counter, a squished up box of orange juice in his hand.

He was hoping to find Hinata when he'd come to buy lunch but he didn't see him. Sighing, he went over to the counter himself and bought bread, convincing himself that Hinata was so busy with work that he couldn't even get lunch and, of course, as a _teammate_ it was his job to make sure his fellow dumbass didn't starve to death.

And so Kageyama marched towards Hinata’s class, ready to give him a lecture about the importance of a healthy diet- even though bread didn't exactly constitute a healthy diet.

He stopped at the doorway when he saw the boy sitting at his desk, already eating bread as he scribbled something that was supposed to look pretty but ended up looking hideous, onto a poster.

His stomach felt full of lead and he took a step back and then another, walking away from the classroom before Hinata caught sight of him. He took a sip of the orange juice but his throat still felt dry and he sighed. Really, he was being an idiot going so far as to buy _bread_ just so he had an excuse to see Hinata.

This was just getting out of hand.

Of all the days he had to realize he had a crush on his teammate, it had to be when he couldn't even see him- then again maybe that's exactly _why_ he’d become aware of his feelings now. Kageyama couldn’t believe he’d been so dense about his feelings for so long and he wondered what Hinata would think if he found out how creepy he was acting.

He sighed dejectedly and walked towards his own class, ready to dress up as Sadako, sure that his face looked hideous enough to scare anyone right now.

\---

Kageyama never really did see the point in having cultural festivals but, being forced into participating in one, he had no other alternative but to cooperate.

He stood hidden behind a black curtain and waited for footsteps to draw near. Following the instructions given to him, he stepped out when he heard a couple step closer to him and raised out his arms, pretending to himself that he was blocking someone's spikes. The couple stopped and he stepped forward into the light and smiled- he didn't know what that had to do with scaring _anyone_ but the couple screamed and ran away. He shrugged, walking back and hiding behind the curtain again.

Was his smile really that terrifying? He wondered distantly as he sat down. His classmates had been kind enough to leave a chair for him to sit and he heaved a dramatic sigh as he did.

He’d been doing this haunted house business for three hours now and he was tired and body ached to do something else- jump and throw balls, hear the squeak of his shoes against the polished wooden floor and feel the smack of the ball against his hand. He wanted to look at that blindingly bright smile on Hinata’s face when his tosses serves would land perfectly in Hinata’s hands.

It had been nearly a week now and he still hadn't been able to train with him. Kageyama was starting to think of it as a fantasy almost and that made him sadder than he would have liked to admit.

He heard footsteps again and some whispering among what he assumed was a small group of students. The whispering sounded almost familiar-

"N-Noya-san do you really think coming here was a good idea?" he heard a voice say and Kageyama groaned when he realized it was Tanaka.

"Of course it is. Are you really that scared of some ghosts?" Noya replied and Kageyama heard the footsteps draw closer.

Even if they were his teammates, he still had a job to do and Kageyama couldn't deny he wanted to see how they'd react when he'd jump out at them and-

"C'mon Noya-senpai did we really have to come in here? I-I mean it's not like I’m scared or anything just...I have work at the stalls!" Kageyama didn't have to think about it to know it was Hinata’s voice and his heart leapt in his chest, a warm feeling settling there.

The footsteps drew closer and he could see the silhouette of Noya and Tanaka's bodies, and Hinata walking just a few steps behind them.

He didn't know what came over him but he didn't jump out at them, he didn’t scream at them like he’d planned- instead, he reached out his hand and clamped onto Hinata’s arm as he walked past him, pulling him in behind the black curtain.

Kageyama’s body teetered uncertainly as Hinata’s weight landed against his chest and his head banged against the wall behind him. It hurt and he managed a muffled groan as Hinata jumped back from him, his hand still in Kageyama’s.

"W-what the-" he began and Kageyama immediately clamped a hand onto his mouth, afraid that he'd yell.

"Shhh! it's me!" Kageyama said quickly, moving a little so that his face was more visible under the light.

Hinata opened his mouth again, ready to scream before realization finally dawned on him and his eyebrows shot up, his mouth closing again. Kageyama felt his lips soft and warm against the back of his hand and he could feel a blush rising to his face- he was a little thankful for the white makeup right now but he was sure it wasn’t doing a very good job. He withdrew his hand and Hinata breathed in quickly as if he had been short of air.

"What the hell are you doing, Kageyama?" he whispered angrily, "Noya-senpai and Tanaka-senpai are still out there."

Kageyama opened his mouth to offer an explanation when he heard a horrified scream a little ways away from him and he sighed.

"That's Tanaka-senpai isn't it?" he asked and Hinata nodded, barely able to hold his laughter.

Kageyama's lips quirked upwards and the two of them listened silently, waiting for their senpai to say something more.

"Oi Noya-san! Where's Hinata?" he asked.

"Huh? Wasn't he here just a while ago?"

Hinata chuckled, barely able to hold himself from shaking and Kageyama felt their bodies touch in the darkness. They waited a few more seconds before the two of them retreated, whispering to each other in terrified voices.

With them gone, the place settled into silence once more and Kageyama became aware of how close the two of them were sitting, their arms brushing against each other's and his heat almost a physical thing between the two of them. Hinata looked at him, a smile on his lips and Kageyama tried hard not to look away.

"Did you do that to scare the senpais?"

Kageyama nodded jerkily, a little glad that Hinata came up with an explanation on his own. It’s not like he could tell him how he'd just pulled him in because he'd missed him so much, or how he'd been wanting to sit with him like this for _days_.

"They get scared easily." Kageyama said, almost glad at how easy it was so talk to him.

"That's true!" he said, "But it would have been so much cooler if you'd jumped out and smiled at them. Like that creepy smile you have whenever you're really happy about hitting serves."

Kageyama's eyes narrowed, "Does my smile look that creepy?" he asked, tilting his head to the side, "Is that why they asked me to smile in front of the students the moment I’d jump out?"

Hinata's mouth fell open and his body shook, "Are you serious? They really asked you to do that?" he laughed, and his voice filled the room like a sweet melody and even though Kageyama was distinctly aware that he was being made fun of, all he could see was Hinata laughing so happily beside him that he felt like flying. Maybe that's how Hinata felt when he spiked those tosses, jumping so high that it looked like a crow taking flight.

"Kageyama your mouth's hanging open," Hinata said and Kageyama immediately clamped it shut.

"Shut up dumbass, I was just thinking."

"Thinking? What about?"

_About how hopelessly I’m in love with you._

"About how stupid you are for missing volleyball practice for the past week." he said instead, trying not to smile.

Hinata pouted and lowered his head, "It's not like I skipped on purpose. I've been dying to practice too, you know."

"Good. I hope you didn't just forget how to receive over the week."

Hinata elbowed him, scowling, "Do you really think I’d forget it so quickly? I've been thinking about it all week!"

"Want to go practice right now?" Kageyama asked, feeling his body tingle at the very thought, "The gym's probably open."

"Do you really mean that?" Hinata asked, his grin widening and he leaned forward, his face so close to Kageyama that his breath caught in his throat.

He was almost tempted to respond by kissing him but he quashed the thought as soon as it came and instead flicked his forehead, earning a frustrated groan from the boy instead.

"What was that for, you jerk?"

Kageyama smirked and got up, pulling Hinata with him, "Of course I meant it, dumbass. Let's go."

He could feel Hinata jumping beside him and Kageyama felt a sense of completeness walking with him out of the classroom, shoulders touching, footsteps matching the other's. It was just how he wanted it to be and his hopeless crush on him didn't change any of that. He'd take things one step at a time and for now he was happy with just this.

A few steps away from the gym, Hinata stopped and stood in front of him, looking like he wanted to say something important. Kageyama’s pulse quickened as he raised his eyebrows to ask what Hinata wanted to say.

"Aren't you going to take that wig off?"

Kageyama internally slapped himself for even hoping for something else- knowing Hinata, there wouldn’t be any progress even if he tried taking any action. He gripped the back of the wig, throwing it onto the ground.

"There?" he said irritably, "Happy now?"

Hinata grinned "You look much better without it!" he said and skipped into the gym, taking the distraction as an opportunity to take a lead on him.

Kageyama shook his head and ran after him, "Oi dumbass wait for me!"

**Author's Note:**

> i _might_ end up writing a sequel to this. there was already another short i had planned i guess it could tie in with this. or i could write it as an individual piece.  
>  either way, i really love writing these two and i hope i did their characters justice :0  
> thanks for reading, i hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
